Newtown High School’s field hockey team bounced back from a 1-0 loss to visiting Immaculate of Danbury in a South-West Conference clash on September 10 with a 4-0 victory at Morgan of Clinton on September 13 and a 5-1 triumph over visiting Brookfield in another SWC matchup on September 15.

Emily O’Neil scored twice and Lucia Romano and Charlotte Grasso also scored in the win over Morgan. Kaitlyn Doyle, Evelynn Schoen, Emma Chappa, and Lyla Bshara had assists. Mandie Faircloth also played solidly, Coach Megan Goyda said. Newtown did not allow a penalty corner in a dominant performance.

In the win over Brookfield, Schoen scored twice and Corynn Hettenbach, O’Neil, and Kayla Locke found the back of the cage. Faircloth and Kaylin Pimentel had assists. Newtown led 2-0 at halftime, scoring a goal in each of the first two quarters, and dominated in the third to put the game out of reach. When all was said and done the Nighthawks finished with an 11-3 advantage in penalty corners, a result of strong possession and pressure on the offensive end of the field.

“I think we’re working together and not over-complicating it. Our circle play was tremendous tonight,” said Goyda, referring to her team’s positioning and decision-making to let shots on goal without stopping or slowing the momentum of the ball.

“It’s always good to get a conference win,” Goyda said.

The Nighthawks improved to 4-2 overall — a good start to the season given the team is going through a bit of a transition, having lost several key players to graduation from last year’s conference championship squad.

“We’re young and that shows at times but the trust is starting to grow which I think translates to our success,” said Goyda, adding that the Nighthawks team still has some work ahead to reach its peak. “We’re not there yet but we’re getting close to it.”

“Our chemistry’s there — we’re all together and supporting each other,” Doyle added.

The Hawks will go out of conference to visit Lauralton Hall of Milford Monday, September 22 at 4 pm.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.